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After honeymooning in
Rotterdam, where his wife also had family, the couple settled there. Greenman joined his father-in-law's bookselling business, often travelling to London. He considered returning to live in England in the 1930s, but decided to stay in the Netherlands after hearing
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on 8 October 1942 to be deported. Despite
Greenman's protestations that he was British, and should be released, he and his family joined 700 others on a train out of the Netherlands in January 1943. Proof of his nationality arrived soon after they left.
273:, was published in 1996. Into his nineties Greenman was to be found in the museum every Sunday, willing to talk to anyone about his experiences and he also guided tours around the camp at Auschwitz. The museum's collection was merged with that of the
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in the evenings. He was short – 5'2" or 158 cm – and slightly built, but he later attributed his survival to his physical training and useful skills. He made a promise to God that he would survive and tell others of the suffering in the camps.
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in 1962, Greenman determined to tell his story to anyone who would listen. Late into his life, he would visit schools to bear witness to the
Holocaust, showing them his tattoo and telling them his story. He donated photographs and mementos to the
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protected enemy civilians. He gave his money and passport to a non-Jewish friend to keep them safe, But, fearing that
Germans may find out that he had helped a Jew, the friend destroyed the passport. Greenman and his family were sent to the
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Greenman held a
British passport, and had expected that he and his family would be evacuated, but the staff at the British consulate in Rotterdam disappeared and he could not escape. Even so, he expected to remain safe, as the
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industrial complex inside
Auschwitz (also known as Auschwitz III) in September 1943, where he was subjected to medical experiments. When the camp was evacuated in early 1945, Greenman was sent on a 90-kilometre
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He also campaigned against the far right, regularly receiving threats of violence as a result; in 1994, his home in London was attacked. In 1993, he joined the demonstration calling for the closure of the
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where upon arrival the snow outside the train was littered with suitcases abandoned by people who had arrived before them. His wife and son were taken to one side and were murdered in the
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Greenman returned to
Rotterdam immediately after the war, and he moved back to England in November 1945. He took home uniforms and other mementos of his imprisonment. He lived in
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Greenman was tattooed on his arm with prisoner number 98288, and became a slave labourer. Surviving another sorting after 6 weeks, he worked as a barber, and sang to the
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144:. He also enjoyed singing, and met his future wife Esther ("Else") van Dam at an amateur operatic society in the 1930s. They married in 1935 at Stepney Green synagogue.
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almost immediately. Greenman was sent in a different direction, one of 50 men selected to be labourers.
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95:. He gave regular talks to school children about his experience at Auschwitz, and also wrote a book,
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Greenman described travelling for 36 hours across Europe with no food or water, to the
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residents. He had two brothers and three sisters. His mother's family were originally
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Jews. His mother died when he was two years old, and, aged 5, he went to live in
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after an operation on a broken bone sustained in a fall. He was buried at
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241:, working on a market stall for 40 years, and also performing as a
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371:. Library of Holocaust testimonies. London: Vallentine Mitchell.
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355:: other British inmates of Auschwitz extermination camp
603:"'We're British, and we're Jewish – and we're uneasy'"
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in south-east London. He also actively supported the
323:He suffered a heart attack in 2006, and received a
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87:(18 December 1910 – 7 March 2008) was a British
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571:"Leon Greenman: English survivor of Auschwitz"
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820:Officers of the Order of the British Empire
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660:"People: The only Englishman in Auschwitz"
221:, and then taken in open cattle trucks to
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757:In Pictures: An Englishman in Auschwitz,
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116:Greenman was born on 18 December 1910 in
815:English people of Russian-Jewish descent
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835:Auschwitz concentration camp survivors
810:English people of Dutch-Jewish descent
729:Leon Greenman – why we must honour him
633:"Memories of Auschwitz: Leon Greenman"
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271:Leon Greenman Auschwitz Survivor 98288
317:for services against racism in 1988.
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449:Claire Dissington (10 March 2008).
245:under the stage name "Leon Maure".
711:Shoah educator Greenman dies at 97
541:"Prince visits college for rabbis"
397:England and Wales Births 1837–1983
108:is dedicated to Greenman's story.
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686:"Blair is 'right wing' – Haider"
631:Stephen Moss (13 January 2005).
569:Julie Waterson (10 March 2008).
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830:World War II civilian prisoners
91:campaigner and survivor of the
800:British people of World War II
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124:, which at the time had many
104:The Holocaust gallery of the
93:Auschwitz concentration camp
752:, BBC London, December 2007
254:National Socialist Movement
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368:An Englishman in Auschwitz
320:Greenman never remarried.
208:He was transferred to the
98:An Englishman in Auschwitz
513:"Obituary: Leon Greenman"
451:"Obituary: Leon Greenman"
339:peace garden in Ilford.
256:, addressing a rally in
825:People from Whitechapel
481:"The Holocaust Gallery"
365:Greenman, Leon (2001),
179:Westerbork transit camp
161:invaded the Netherlands
295:British National Party
795:English anti-fascists
766:The Holocaust Gallery
307:Unite Against Fascism
770:London Jewish Museum
716:The Jewish Chronicle
485:Jewish Museum London
283:London Jewish Museum
252:, the leader of the
106:Jewish Museum London
518:The Daily Telegraph
150:Neville Chamberlain
154:peace for our time
122:East End of London
666:. 27 January 2005
333:East Ham Cemetery
313:. He received an
287:Holocaust Gallery
227:American 3rd Army
174:Geneva Convention
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743:External links
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692:. 28 June 2002
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547:. 22 June 2006
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694:. Retrieved
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668:. Retrieved
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642:. Retrieved
638:The Guardian
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611:. Retrieved
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456:The Guardian
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353:Jane Haining
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89:anti-fascism
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73:Anti-fascism
62:(2008-03-07)
60:7 March 2008
15:
790:2008 deaths
785:1910 births
750:Leon's Tale
349:Tex Banwell
311:Jörg Haider
215:death march
118:Whitechapel
42:Whitechapel
779:Categories
696:12 October
670:12 October
644:12 October
613:12 October
582:12 October
551:12 October
525:12 October
490:12 October
462:12 October
384:References
377:0853034249
233:Later life
223:Buchenwald
187:death camp
112:Early life
75:campaigner
69:Occupation
34:1910-12-18
329:pneumonia
325:pacemaker
134:Rotterdam
759:BBC News
690:BBC News
664:BBC News
607:BBC News
545:BBC News
343:See also
267:Finchley
219:Gleiwitz
210:Monowitz
191:Birkenau
768:at the
299:Welling
130:Russian
120:in the
761:, 2003
375:
279:Camden
239:Ilford
142:barber
126:Jewish
281:(now
243:tenor
202:kapos
158:Nazis
138:boxer
698:2013
672:2013
646:2013
615:2013
584:2013
553:2013
527:2013
492:2013
464:2013
373:ISBN
351:and
305:and
57:Died
28:Born
315:OBE
277:in
265:in
217:to
189:at
85:OBE
781::
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Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
